1. Buffers to Online Harassment in Women’s Pursuit of STEM Careers Rachael Bryant, Jennifer Hightower and, Bryan Dawson Ph.D Background: Women have consistently chosen not to enter into careers in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, and they only represent “twenty-four percent of the STEM workforce (“Women and Girls in STEM,” 2013, p.1). ” While STEM fields such as programming for video games and other similar career paths may seem like a logical career choice for women who have played video games, prior research suggests that women do not enter the STEM fields as readily as men. We hypothesized that discrimination against women in video games may make them less likely to pursue careers in the STEM fields. We also examined the buffers, such as family bonds and personality traits, for women who do pursue careers in the STEM fields, hypothesizing that these buffers in a woman’s life would make her more likely to consider a career in the STEM fields. Method: Participants: Data were collected through an online survey using Qualtrics that was taken by five-hundred Caucasian women and five-hundred ethnic minority women. Through the survey, we assessed the participants’ reactions to discrimination and harassment, their likelihood to enter the STEM fields, and the role of supportive family members and friends as well as their personality characteristics as a buffer to online harassment in pursuing careers in the STEM fields. Scales: Participants answered questions based on scales including: Attitudes toward Women Scale (Spence and Helmreich, 1972), α=.683 Personal Attributes Questionnaire (Spence, Helmreich & Stapp, 1973) α=.451 Video Game Sexism Scale (Fox & Tang, 2013) α=.954 Player Motivations (Yee, 2006) α=.850 Social Dominance Scale (Sidanius and Pratto 1999) α=.785 Hostile Online Environment Questionnaire (Unfriendly) α=.464 Results: Most women who have experienced sexual harassment do not consider a career in designing video games χ² (1, N = 683) = 8.396a, p <..005. (figure1) Most women who have experienced sexual harassment after decideing to pursue a career in video games, continue to pursue a career or have a career in designing video games χ² (1, =161)=.175, p=.719. (figure 1) Those who would regularly play with their significant other report others for harassment online (N=290,M=1.9, SD=1.155, SEM=.068) significantly more than those who do not report harassment (N=311,M=1.23, SD=.686, SEM=. 039) t(599)=4.258, p<.000. (figure 2) Those who have been discriminated online (N=62, M=1.95, SD=1.384, SEM=.176) report players significantly more often than those that have not been discriminated against (N=539, M=1.33, SD=.872, SEM=.038) t(599)=4.961, p<.000. (figure 3) Women who would rather play with their significant other are more likely to have been sexually harassed by someone online than those who does not play with ther significant other X2 (1, N = 683) = 7.824a, p <..006 (figure 4) Those who would regulrarly play with their significant other are more likely to not feel that they are a part of an online community χ² (1, N=683)=5.351, p=.025 (Figure 5) Figure 4 Conclusion/ Implications: It is possible that more women would be able to enter into STEM fields if they felt more comfortable with the environment and knew that they would not face much discrimination. Many women shy away from STEM fields due to societal norms conformations and discrimination that may occur. Many women who have encountered harassment while playing utilize the reporting mechanisms in video games, however these mechanisms are not perceived as reliable as they could be. If they were improved, it is possible that more women would be willing to keep playing regardless of any harassment because they would feel as if they have more control over any situation that may appear. Discussion: Although harassment does seem to prevent women from considering a career in the STEM fields, women who have already made the decision to pursue or have a career in the STEM fields are no longer affected by the harassment that they may experience. Women who have been discriminated against do utilize the reporting system in video games more than those who have not been discriminated against at an extremely significant rate. One coping mechanism that may be used as a buffer for women who continue to play video games regardless of harassment is playing with their significant other. These women tend to report harassment more often, although they are harassed online more often than women who do not play with their significant other. Those who play regularly with their significant other are more likely to not feel that they are a part of an online community which may mean that because they play so much with their significant other they are not able to form online relationships or they may have no desire to form those types of relationships at all. Figure 1: Frequencies of have considered, have not considered, still pursuing, and still not pursuing a career in video games were analyzed through SPSS. Figures 2: Means derived from t-tests analyzed through SPSS about playing with romantic partner and reporting harassment Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 5 Figure 3 Figure 3: Means derived from t-tests analyzed through SPSS about discrimination and reporting it in the video game systems Figure 4 Chi square analyses derived from SPSS about sexual harassment and playing with romantic partner Figure 5: Chi square analyzes derived from SPSS about feeling apart of an online community and playing video games with a romantic partner